The WideAngle August/September 1996 Volume 1 No 8

Getting the Health Care You Deserve

by Kimberly Moore

No one wants to be sick, let alone be admitted to a hospital as an inpatient. Being a fat person adds a certain amount of anxiety in addition to worrying about recovering from your illness. Will they have a bed that will support you? Will there even be a gown that will cover your behind? What about exams, lab tests, or something as simple as a blood pressure cuff? It's enough to make you sick just thinking about it!

The news isn't all bad, there are some things that you can control. You need to be assertive and become a knowledgeable patient. You need to become an informed consumer. Yes, I said consumer. We often forget that hospitals are a business that provides a service. As a customer, we are entitled to the care we are paying for.

How does one go about this? Let's look at your primary health care provider, your physician. He or she is employed by you. You pay for his services, much like you pay for the services of say your accountant or attorney. You expect a certain level of expertise and you place your trust and your health in their hands. Just like accountants and attorneys, that level may differ from physician to physician. You really need to shop for a doctor. We spend more time shopping for a comfortable pair of shoes than we do a doctor.

The first thing we need to do is assess exactly what our health care needs are. Are we looking for a physician to provide care for our entire family? Do we primarily need an internist or one who specializes in cardiology or pulmonary disease? Even within the confines of a managed health care organization, there is room for you to make choices. Make a list of the physicians that are available and then the interview process begins.

This doesn't have to be a complicated procedure. It may only take a few phone calls and you're done. What kinds of things do you want to know about your physician? Well, if you are seeking a specialist, you'll want to be sure he or she is board certified. Who are the doctors who take calls for him? If he is part of a group will you be able to maintain a primary physician, or will you be bounced from doctor to doctor as the patient load dictates? How prepared is the office to accept a large size patient? Do they have a large size blood pressure cuff in the office? How about the waiting room, is it accessible to large size patients? Are there armless chairs available? If the office is located in a multi-storied building is there an elevator in the building? The office manager should be able to provide you with all this information.

Now the big question, how does he feel towards his fat patients? Does he treat them with respect? You can even ask if the doctor has any large size patients that may be contacted for a referral. This may seem a little excessive, but it's your body we are talking about and you need to think of yourself as being the one in control of your health care team. If you have a friend who can recommend a doctor, this would be in as much the same thing.

So you have selected a doctor you can trust, now what? Become a good patient. Make a detailed, accurate history and take it with you to your first visit. You may want to bring him one of the many books on size acceptance, or some literature on treating the large size patient. Be friendly, but assertive. You will get better results that way. If you need to, bring your own plus size patient gowns. They are available through a couple of mail order companies. It is a good idea to have one or two of them really. That way you can always bring it with you when you need to have exams or procedures done. You will find them well worth the investment.

Become familiar with the hospital in your area and the facilities that are available there. Do they have a CT scanner that can accommodate you? If not, where is the closest one located? Same with a MRI, is it an open MRI? Keep a record of the data you collect, and share it with your doctor. If you have a size acceptance group in your area, I am sure they will be interested in what information you have discovered. (The Coalition is attempting to archive such information to be made available to anyone requesting it.) Most hospitals have a patient relations department; they should be able to answer any questions you might have. It may take them some time to research exactly what services they are able to provide, so allow them time to do so. Knowing what the hospital can provide for you will relieve you of some of the anxiety we face as large size people seeking medical care. It will give the hospital an idea what the community's needs are and an opportunity to provide them.

Hospitals do have special beds available to them for super-sized patients. Hill-Rom manufactures a bed that they rent to hospitals on an as-needed basis. For most of us, this will not be a problem. It is good to know that, should we need the service, there is a company out there to provide it.

Another thing that most people never consider is, now that we have made our wishes known, who is going to speak for us when we cannot speak for ourselves? We should all think about the extent of medical care. The California Medical Association has devised a Durable Power Of Attorney For Health Care. This document is legally binding and provides for a designate to act as your agent in the event that you cannot speak for yourself. You do not need a lawyer to assist you with this document. It is available either from the case management or social services department at your local medical facility or at some stationary stores.

No one wants to face the possibility that the day may come when we may need to make decisions in regard to life sustaining treatment. The fact remains that every one of us has the right to have our desires upheld. It's better to be over prepared than to never have explained our wishes to our families and our loved ones.

Extra large and Supersize Hospital gowns available from:

NAAFA Feminist SIG
30.00 check/MO
c/o Lynn Meletiche
2065 First Ave., #19-D
NY NY 10029
212-721-8259

Exami_Gowns
1-800-962-GOWN

JW Ramage Catalog
1-800-621-7587

Send EMail to The Wide Angle

Return to table of contents.